Before I get into the touring of the day, I have an "it's a small world" moment for you CREW folks out there. Remember the family from Columbus who are part of my small touring group? Well, the woman works for the Limited. So most of you have probably already guessed it...she knows Cheryl Mack!! Not just "knows" her, but knows her well. Even went to school with Cheryl's brother. (For the non-CREW (that's 'Commercial Real Estate Women') folks, Cheryl was one of the early board members of CREW, back before I served as the CREW president, which was in 1998). Yes, it can be a really small world. We had quite an aha moment at the beginning of yesterday's touring.
So back to the touring! We focused more on the natural wonders of the island, with an occasional wildlife sighting. Along the way, we spotted these bee boxes, from which they gather the honey from the ligurion bees. Kangaroo Island is the only place left in the world where this special variety of bees still exists. The honey here was awesome.
On our way over to the western side of the island, we first stopped off at the roo lagoon wood shop for our morning tea. (we had added another delightful couple from Belgium to our group for the day).
This was a favorite stop of the original postmen who traveled the island on horseback; giving their horses a rest and watering too.
The proprietor of the wood shop made some wonderful items...some of the bowls were absolutely beautiful! But too big for my backpack :-) which is all I brought over to the island.
Then back in our trusty vehicle to continue our trek to the far western reaches of the island.
But not before this scorpion raided our tea party....yikes...
Our next stop was at the "Remarkable Rocks" and they lived up to their name.
Both the rocks and the coastline are those wonders that are so difficult to capture via photo, as they are so vast and breathtaking. Even more difficult, as it was extremely windy, so hard to keep your camera still.
I ventured up to the top of this one.....(the easy one).....
...while Grant couldn't resist climbing to the top of this one....
Then we were on to our next stop at the "Admirals Arch"....
Where the coastline was even MORE spectacular....
Again hard to capture the crashing of the waves up against the rocks, but this photo will bring back that memory for me!
The New Zealand Fur Seals also like the view from here....there were hundreds of them lounging on the rocks...
Then it was another stop for a wonderful picnic lunch...this time chicken with lots of salad! One of the specialties of the island is their sheeps milk cheese (which they served with every meal :-) sometimes you've just got to enjoy the local fare!
We then got a look at the local post office.....
That is not a joke! This is where the postman leaves the mail for everyone within that area. Yes, the washing machine is one of the mail receptacles for one of the residents! They each set up their own unique post box. Brenda said there was at one time even a toilet!
We did get to see the local porcupine, the echidna, a light orange color, which crossed the road in front of us, but he was too fast to capture his photo.
And last, before heading back to my ferry and back to Adelaide, we got another chance to watch the "Roos" grazing on what used to be a sheep farm that was "sold" to the park service by the woman who had completed the establishment of the farm on her own after losing her husband to illness.....establishing a farm here is not easy as one has to remove the thick "bush" in order to establish the grazing area for the sheep.
I got back quite late last night and so am probably going to take a rest day today. (although at some point I may have to check out the Clipsal 500, a race car event through the streets that is taking place this week in Adelaide).
I can't close out the day's post without recognizing the horrid events that are playing out in Japan. I woke up to the news that the US has advised American tourists to get out of Tokyo due to the expected fallout from the nuclear disaster. My thoughts and prayers are with all of my family and friends who reside in Tokyo as they determine what they might need to do to protect themselves and their loved ones. It is looking more and more like I will need to divert my own travels away from Japan as I continue around the world. I will make the decision when I get to Sydney at the end of my stay in Australia as to whether or not I will make that diversion, and where that might take me.
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Location:Adelaide, Australia
I loved the "Rooos" & the pictures of you at "Remarkable Rocks" And, I too have been concerned about the horrible situation in Tokyo & worried about your nepew & his family. Such an unbelievable catastrophy in that country. I just pray that things get better & that they're ok. Suzie & John must be beside themselves. Hope to hear from you soon.
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